Apple cinnamon muffins

Instructions

1. Step 1

   Preheat the oven to 190°C and line a twelve-cup muffin tin with paper liners. The oven needs to be hot enough for the crumble topping to crisp before the muffins bake through. The oven is ready when the heating light goes off.

   Mark step 1 as done

2. Step 2

   Mix 40 g all-purpose flour, 40 g brown sugar and 1 g ground cinnamon, then add 30 g cold diced unsalted butter and rub it in with your fingertips. Streusel, a buttery sugar crumble, needs cold butter so it bakes into separate crunchy nuggets. It is ready when it looks like wet sand and forms small clumps when squeezed; keep it in the fridge while you make the batter.

   Mark step 2 as done

3. Step 3

   Peel and core the apples, then cut them into fingertip-sized cubes, weighing out 220 g apples. Moderately small pieces turn tender in the short baking time and will not make the muffins soggy. The apples are ready when the cubes are all the same size.

   Mark step 3 as done

4. Step 4

   In a large bowl, stir together 250 g all-purpose flour, 8 g baking powder, 2 g baking soda, a pinch salt and 4 g ground cinnamon, then add the apples and toss to coat them in flour. The flour coating keeps the apples from all sinking to the bottom. The dry mixture is ready when every apple cube has a light white dusting.

   Mark step 4 as done

5. Step 5

   Melt 100 g unsalted butter over low heat and let it cool a little, then whisk it with 120 g brown sugar, 50 g granulated sugar, 100 g eggs, 120 g whole milk and 5 g vanilla extract. Melted butter gives a richer, more tender crumb than oil. The mixture is ready when the sugar has nearly dissolved and the surface looks smooth and glossy.

   Low heat.

   Mark step 5 as done

6. Step 6

   Pour the wet mixture into the bowl of flour and apples and fold with a flat spatula about fifteen times, until no dry flour remains. Muffin batter mixed just enough gives a tender crumb full of small air pockets. The batter is ready when it is thick, clings to the spatula and the apples are spread evenly throughout.

   Mark step 6 as done

7. Step 7

   Spoon the batter into the liners until nearly full, then cover the top of each one with the cold streusel and press down very lightly. A gentle press helps the crumble stick to the batter while staying loose. You have done it right when each muffin is covered in a thick, even layer of crumble.

   Mark step 7 as done

8. Step 8

   Bake at 190°C for 20 to 24 minutes, until the crumble turns golden brown and the muffins have risen high. The apples release moisture as they bake, so these need a little longer than ordinary muffins. They are done when a skewer inserted into the batter in the center comes out clean, with no wet batter.

   Bake at 190°C for about 20 to 24 minutes.

   Mark step 8 as done

9. Step 9

   Let the muffins sit in the tin for about ten minutes, then move them to a rack to finish cooling. The apples inside are very hot, and resting lets the crumb set and the crumble firm up and crisp. They are ready when you can lift them out of the tin without the streusel falling off.

   Suggested time: about 15 minutes.

   Mark step 9 as done